5 keto apps that will help you keep track of your diet

On the keto bandwagon? We've put together a list of the best calorie counting and recipe apps to help you out

If there was a wellness trend that made the biggest headlines in 2018, it was the keto diet. Not just a weight loss technique, it found favour with nutritionists and health practitioners after it was seen to reduce the risk for diabetes and heart disease. Whether you’re a keto rookie or you’ve been aboard the keto train for a while now, you’ll know that tracking macros and googling “how many calories is a *insert food item here*” is pretty inconvenient. To make it easier, we put together five apps that will help you count, track and stay motivated.

What’s the fuss around keto?

The principle behind the ketogenic or keto diet is simple—cut your carbs and eat more healthy fats to force your body to burn fat. It is a low carb (5 to 10 per cent), medium protein (15-30 per cent) and high fat diet (70-80 per cent) which forces the body to enter the state of ketosis where it uses fat instead of glucose for energy. Besides significant weight loss, ketosis that is tailored to control insulin spikes also lowers blood sugar and reduces inflammation. However, the catch lies in the calculation of the macronutrients (carbs, proteins and fats) consumed.

A keto diet is not just about eliminating carbs and including good fats and proteins, but also about changing the way you cook your food. It is all about managing your carb intake and limiting it to a very low number, typically 20 to 25 g net carbs per day. You need to track your macros precisely to stay within that limit. The keto diet is one of the stricter food plans around, and you need to make sure you’re logging your food and serving sizes with accuracy to get your system into ketosis.

When choosing a tracking app, make sure that you pick one that tracks your macros. If you are in here for a longer haul opt for one that also tracks your sodium, potassium and magnesium intake to make sure that your electrolytes are in check.

5 top apps to help you on your keto journey:

MyFitnessPal

MyFitnessPal does a lot to help keep you track with your food goals—it is equipped with a calorie counter, recipe importer and nutrient tracker. You can key in your goal macros, and then input your meals throughout the day. The app gives you information about calories consumed and calories that need to be burnt to meet the goal. Additionally, you can track dietary fibre, which will allow you to know your net carb count for the day. The best part about the app is the bar code scanner, which can tell you information about most foods. A definite bonus is how it seamlessly syncs with most third-party devices, so your Apple Watch data gets uploaded instantly. The less math you have to do to keep yourself on track, the easier it is to stick with the program.

App available for iOS and Android

HealthifyMe

Often touted as the Indian cousin of MyFitnessPal, HealthifyMe contains a comprehensive database of more than 20,000 Indian foods, from daal to idli, with Indian serving sizes. The app creates up with a customised diet chart and meal planner as per your health data and BMI to get you started. You can track your diet with a nutrition calculator that breaks down your protein, fibre and carbohydrate intake with accurate macro-nutrient mapping. An effective keto diet also involves doubling up your consumption of water to hydrate your system from within. Timely reminders and water tracking notifications assist in staying mindful of the overall water intake. Its unique feature is nutritionist Ria, the world’s first AI powered virtual nutritionist who is capable of answering questions in audio and text.

App available for iOS and Android

Total Keto Diet

This one is great for the keto diet neophyte. The guide section is a one stop shop to all you need to know about it—from keto recipes to shopping lists and informational articles. Getting into the new health plan also requires you to learn some new recipes to replicate the same taste with different ingredients than the ones you probably know and love. The app’s recipe library is constantly updated, and also allows user to upload their favourite ones.

App available for iOS and Android

Carb Manager

This is the most comprehensive low-carb tracker and macros counter. On initial setup, it asks you a few questions to come up with your macronutrient targets—fat, protein, and calories. You get advanced analyses so that you can look for trends over time and make predictions about how certain proportions of macronutrients will affect your weight. One of the salient features of this app is you can take a photo of any food, and Carb Manager will tell you its nutritional information. The app allows users to log in their meals via voice, camera, or search.

App available for iOS and Android

Cron-o-meter

Cron-o-meter is slightly more complex than the other apps listed here. However, it has an edge over others as it tracks not only the macros but also micro nutrients including your vitamins and minerals. One of the trickiest sides of keto is how this diet may lack in micronutrients such as thiamin, folate, calcium, iron, potassium and magnesium, so an app that is able to track this aspect is definitely a plus. Serious keto dieters love it for its precision and the details.